Agro Perspectiva

The USA is forced to give in to Chinese expansion

11.05.2012 09:07 "Agro Perspectiva" (Kyiv) — China is beginning expansion to the financial markets of the USA. This is how Russian experts commented on the first ever case of the Federal Reserve System (FRS) giving its approval for the acquisition of a US bank by a Chinese bank. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China is acquiring Bank of East Asia U. S. A. Two large Chinese companies will also take part in the acquisition. The FRS also issued approval for Bank of China to set up a branch in Chicago, and for the Agricultural Bank of China to set up a branch in New York. The US has a very jealous attitude towards foreign presence of its financial markets, pointed out Garegin Tosunyan, president of the Association of Russian banks in his interview to the Voice of Russia. And even more so towards any extension of Chinese influence, taking into consideration that China is stepping on the US toes trying to take the leadership as the largest economy in the world. Garegin Tosunyan believes that we are seeing a very strong move by Beijing: «It is an expansion. And it has long-term goals. China has long arrived at the idea that today the way to conquer the world is not with arms, but via economy. Entering the US financial market gives it a chance to influence various processes in the USA a lot more than trying to achieve a position and gain some weight on that market by other methods. It also reflects how China expands on the markets of Africa, Asia and Europe». The world financial crisis forces the US to be more flexible. Among other things, it forces the US to find arguments to convince the strong anti-Chinese political lobby to find compromise with Beijing. At the same time, the US cannot accept such a powerful tool of Chinese influence on the world as a whole as its enormous golden reserves. Mikhail Khazin, president of NEOCON consulting firm, pointed this out. «China has enormous dollar reserves that are related to the exports to the USA. Americans can no longer refuse China is acquiring large assets, otherwise China would stop acquiring US Treasury bills. This would severely affect the US budget, its financial system. China’s influence is becoming de-facto more and more prominent, and it demands that this influence is confirmed de-jure practically in all spheres. That includes the US banking system. I am inclined to believe that China will continue its expansion in various directions. And the USA will have fewer and fewer arguments against allowing this expansion». This conclusion is supported by the recent entry of the Chinese petrochemical corporation Sinopec to the US market. At the end of April it concluded the deal to acquire a stake in five US projects of the US energy company «Devon». This international company specializing in exploration and extraction of oil reserves in China, a 100% daughter company of Sinopec, for 2.44 billion USD acquired Devon’s reserves of natural shale gas in the states of Wyoming, Mississippi, Ohio, Michigan and Alabama. It was Sinopec’s first attempt to enter the oil and gas market of the USA. Prior to that this company entered the Canadian market with an acquisition that cost it 2.2 billion USD. «Daylight Energy» acted as its partner. That market was also completely closed for Chinese capital up until recently.